Feb 10 (Reuters) - Global health charity Medecins du
Monde (MdM) launched a legal challenge on Tuesday to a European
patent held by U.S. drugmaker Gilead Sciences Inc which
it accused of charging "exorbitant" prices for a hepatitis C
drug.
Arguing that Gilead is "abusing" its patent on Sovaldi,
known generically as sofosbuvir, MdM said its challenge marked
the first time in Europe a medical charity has used this method
to try and improve patients' access to medicines.
"While using sofosbuvir to treat hepatitis C represents a
major therapeutic advance, the molecule itself, which is the
result of work by many public and private researchers, is not
sufficiently innovative to warrant a patent," MdM said in a
statement.